Tech News Blog
5.13.05
Eiger Sanctioned?
According to a story published by CNET, Microsoft is developing a new operating system aimed at old PCs that either can’t be upgraded to XP, or have owners that won’t upgrade because of security concerns. While that strategy may help Microsoft sell a few more operating systems, it won’t get around the fact that many applications available today and being developed for tomorrow require an ever increasing share of processing power and memory capacity. Combine that with the end of support for products like Quicken, and you are faced with the inevitable fact that you need to upgrade and or replace your computer every 3-4 years and even more frequently if you are a power-user or a wanna-be power-user like me. Read more about Microsoft’s plan at CNET:
Microsoft tries to breathe life into older PCs
Software maker announces plans for "Eiger," a new version of Windows that would potentially make it more secure. CNET News.com

Firefox Fix Important
The update available from Mozilla for the Firefox browser patches a critical flaw as we noted here yesterday; PC World has more on the issue:
Mozilla Fixes Critical Firefox Bugs
Alternative browser's security upgraded. PCWorld.com - Latest News Stories

Tiger Tales
I have had a few issues with Tiger over the past several days and it looks like my problems are associated with iDisk and the synchronization of the same. After examining my running processes and finding nothing out of the ordinary and eliminating other open programs, it appears to be the cause, but time will tell. If you have had applications unexpectedly quit, Apple’s OS X Top Documents has advice on what steps you can take:
Mac OS X 10.4: Reopening an application after it unexpectedly quits
If a Mac OS X application unexpectedly quits in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, an alert appears that lets you report the issue to Apple or try to reopen the application… Apple Computer Top Mac OS X Documents

Ted Landau Explains the Information Above
MacFixIt has the link for an article by Mac guru Ted Landau that explains the new application crash dialogs for Apple-heads.
mac.column.ted: Tiger's new and improved “application crash” dialogs
Ted Landau May 2005 [Note: This is the first of a few columns where I explore the "smaller" changes in Mac OS X 10.4. These are changes that, while they may not … MacFixIt

Open Source Updates
Secunia has the following bulletins for open source users: Mandriva (1, 2, 3, 4), Ubuntu (1, 2), and FreeBSD.

Multiple Platforms Tip of the Day: Have a good weekend
It is finally finals week in my world of Multiple Platforms and the strain on my brain from grading papers has robbed my creativity for tips for Multiple Platforms users. So the tip for today is have a great weekend, and check out Leo Laporte’s show The Tech Guy On KFI from 11 am to 2pm Saturday and Sunday. Listen live on AM640 in the LA area or via the Internet, just click on the KFI logo found at Leo’s web site.

Catch This Bus
The Multiple Platforms word of the day is ‘bus’ and Wikipedia has this definition: “In computer architecture, a bus is a subsystem that transfers data or power between computer components inside a computer or between computers. Unlike a point-to-point connection, a bus can logically connect several peripherals over the same set of wires.
Early computer buses were literally parallel electrical buses with multiple connections, but the term is now used for any physical arrangement that provides the same logical functionality as a parallel electrical bus. Modern computer buses can use both parallel and bit-serial connections, and can be wired in either a multidrop (electrical parallel) or daisy chain topology, or connected by switched hubs, as in the case of USB.”

Tech News Blog
5.12.05
Firefox Update Available
Mozilla.org has released an update for their Firefox browser that includes security patches that help remedy some recently discovered bugs. Visit Mozilla to get the update or read more on the issue from MacMinute.

Mac Widgets: Truth With Not Much Consequence
MacCentral assures Apple owners that we all need to “take a deep breath” and continue those life processes that are so vital to our existence, like using our Macs. As we noted yesterday, you have nothing to worry about regarding this Widget issue unless someone creates a malicious Widget and then you have the misfortune of finding and installing that bad creation. Check out the word from a Mac expert by clicking on the following:
Editors' Notes: Widget security: fact and fiction
There are valid security concerns about Tiger’s Dashboard widgets. But if you’re overwhelmed by widget worries, take a deep breath and read what Rob Griffiths has to say on the subject. MacCentral

Gates Dreaming of Surpassing iPod Sales; What is Steve Dreaming of?
Reuters is featuring a story regarding Bill Gate’s lofty dreams of mobile phones surpassing iPods as the music player of choice. No word on if Steve Jobs’ has been dreaming lately of so distracting Microsoft with the iPod and their latest operating system successes that Apple grabs a 40 percent share of the computer market (compared to an estimated 4 percent currently).
Gates sees mobile phones overtaking iPods
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Microsoft founder Bill Gates sees mobile phones overtaking MP3s as the top choice of portable music player, and views the raging popularity of Apple's iPod player as unsustainable, he told a German newspaper. Reuters: Technology

Apple Offers Students $100 Rebate
Apple is offering students (or their parents) a one hundred dollar rebate for computers purchased over the next month (May 2 until June 25, 2005). Not all Macs are eligible for this offer, specifically the Mac mini, eMacs, and the least expensive iBook are excluded (I know, my heart started racing to at the thought of adding a mini for less than four hundred dollars).

Amazon Specials
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Migrate to Open Source Using Mac mini
If you are interested in trying open source on the cheap, you can do it with the Mac mini. You can’t build your own computer for the price of the mini and the operating system of choice is Yellow Dog. Check out the tutorial from Lewin Edwards in the following article:
Mad Mac mini multimedia machine, Part 1: Load Linux on the Mac mini
The Mac mini is an ideal low-cost, high-performance PowerPC development platform for numerous applications. Learn how to install and configure Linux on the mini. Future articles will add the software required to make it into a stand-alone multimedia appliance.
Accelerate YourMac News (story origin)

Open Source Update
Secunia announced these security and update bulletins are available for open source systems: Red Hat (1, 2), Linux kernel, Fedora, and Gentoo.

Tip of the Day from Multiple Platforms.com: Looking for a Security Blanket?
If you need protection from crackers, check out St. Bernard Software one of the MultiplePlatforms.com related links: Spam Filters & Email Security - ePrism ePrism is an email filter / spam filters appliance that provides organizations with a total secure email perimeter defense solution.

What is a Spam Filter?
Wikipedia is the source for the following information: “A mail filter is a piece of software which takes an input of an email message. For its output, it might pass the message through unchanged for delivery to the user's mailbox, it might redirect the message for delivery elsewhere, or it might even throw the message away. Some mail filters are able to edit messages during processing.”

Tech News Blog
5.11.05
Patch For Microsoft Important
The latest security update released by Microsoft for Windows XP is ‘important’ and you can learn more about the issue by checking out the following from CNET:
Fix in for Windows flaw
Microsoft patches "important" security hole in the OS and publishes two early alerts in its new advisory program. CNET News.com - Security

New Operating System for Mobile Devices
PC World has a mini-review of Mobile 5, the new operating system released by Microsoft for PDAs and smart phones. Although some have declared the PDA market DOA, Microsoft seems to be providing users with reasons not to throw out the Treo just now and the added tweaks for smart phones won’t hurt sales of the new system either; read the story at PC World:
Microsoft Unwraps Windows Mobile 5
New handheld OS offers increased reliability, improved hardware support, and a host of new features. PCWorld.com - Latest News Stories

Brakes Put on Googlecelerator
The Midas touch that has been so instrumental in the success of Google has apparently failed as the search giant stopped users from downloading their latest software, Accelerator. In a CNET article, Google claims it is a matter of capacity or a lack of the same. Read more about the issue from CNET:
Google puts brakes on Accelerator
Company stops downloads of new Web software, blaming capacity issues. However, some have complained it compromises privacy. CNET News.com

Advice for Widget Monitoring
MacFixIt is an excellent source for advice on anything effecting Apples and they have suggestions for keeping tabs on your Widgets. Remember, if you are just using the Widgets that are supplied by Apple you are not at risk and if follow the directions provided yesterday regarding preference settings you are safe from crackers:
Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) #14: More on managing Widgets; Another CD/DVD burning fix; iSync problem; Classic startup; DHCP; more
Another method for monitoring your Widgets folder Yesterday, in our coverage of an emerging issue where malicious, or at least annoying Widgets could be installed, without the user's… MacFixIt

Open Source Updates
Secunia released these updates for open source users: Mandriva, Ubuntu, Fedora, Red Hat, Sun Solaris, and Gentoo (1, 2).

Tip of the Day from Multiple Platforms: Hot Web Site
If there is a Cinderella story for startup web sites then ipodlounge.com wouldn’t require an audition to grab the lead role; the site is still gaining visitors and when you host a site that highlights the hottest music player on the market it is understandable. If you want to know about iPods, the ipodlounge.com is the place for you to hang. If you are having iTunes annoyances, check out the solutions we have found in response to visitors questions.

What is a Widget?
Apple’s new Widget could be the first crack in security for Mac owners; what is a widget?
Wikipedia provides this on that: “A widget (or control) is a graphical interface component that a computer user interacts with, such as a window or a text box. Widgets are sometimes qualified as virtual to distinguish them from their physical counterparts, e.g. virtual buttons that can be clicked with a mouse cursor, vs physical buttons that can be pressed with a finger. Widgets are often packaged together in widget toolkits. Programmers use widgets to build graphical user interfaces (GUIs).”

Tech News Blog
5.10.05
Googlecellerator?
Google released their ‘Web Accelerator’ last week and per usual it has some people cheering, while it leaves others jeering about possible privacy issues. I haven’t tried it yet, and with broadband speed to my PC, I’m not sure if Google’s new tool will make a noticeable difference. According to a CNET article a frequent surfer can save up to three hours a month using this software that caches and compresses web pages. Read more at CNET:
FAQ: Hard facts about Google's Web Accelerator
The downloadable software speeds the delivery of Web pages but has its critics. What is it, and how does it work? CNET News.com

More on Mac Widget Security Problem
As we reported yesterday, the security of Apple’s Widget architecture or lack thereof, is in question and more experts are weighing in on this issue. The following report is from MacCentral:
News: Dashboard: Widget (In)Security
A new Web page documents an issue with Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger's new Dashboard feature that, left unchecked, could potentially be exploited by malware developers, according to the page's author. The exploit is described and demonstrated on a page called Zaptastic: Blueprint for a widget of mass destruction. Going by the nom de plume of Stephan.com, the author has described how Safari 2.0's default preference settings could lead users to unwittingly download and install a Dashboard widget. MacCentral

Update iTunes to Avoid Security Flaw
According to Secunia, Apple’s iTunes 4.x has a ‘highly critical flaw’ that and could allow crackers to compromise your machine through a “MPEG-4 file parsing buffer overflow”. Secunia advises iTunes users to “update to version 4.8”. MacFixIt and MacCentral are reporting the availability of Apple’s latest version, read more about by following these links:
Apple releases iTunes 4.8
Apple has released iTunes 4.8, available as a 11 MB standalone Web download. According to Apple, the new release offers the following enhancement … MacFixIt

Feature: New in iTunes 4.8 [updated]
Apple has released a new version of iTunes and, in typical fashion, tells us very little about what it improves and adds. Here’s what we’ve discovered in our first look. MacCentral

Open Source Update
Secunia released the following bulletins for open source systems: Fedora (1, 2), Gentoo, and Debian (1, 2).

Multiple Platforms Tip of the Day: Common Error Messages
The Apple web site has a page listing the most common error messages received by Mac-heads when they are downloading files. Find out what those annoying messages really mean by visiting the Apple Support site. PC owners can visit the error message page found at the Microsoft Support Site.

What is Kernel Panic?
According to Wikipedia, “A kernel panic is a message displayed by an operating system upon detecting an internal system error from which it cannot recover. Kernel panics often provide cryptic debugging information that is useful only to the developers of the operating system.
Attempts by the operating system to read an invalid or unpermitted address are a common source of kernel panics. A panic may also occur as a result of a hardware failure.
Kernel Panic (http://ubersoft.net/kpanic/index.html) is also the name of a web comic by Christopher Wright. The comic revolves around a group of unix and linux server admins ordered to change the server farm over to Nifty Doorways (a parody of the Windows operating system.).”

Tech News Blog
5.09.05
Some Sobering Numbers
CNET is reporting that the latest variant of the Sober worm is setting records in the number of PC infected and according to the security watch dog Sophos, the worm was responsible for more than three-fourths of the weekend security breaches. Read more from CNET:
Sober worm hits new heights
The variant now accounts for more than 5 percent of all e-mail, surprising experts with its continued growth. CNET News.com

New Firefox and Mozilla Flaws Found
The Firefox and Mozilla browsers are vulnerable to attacks from crackers according to reports from Secunia and PC World. The Firefox exploits have been rated ‘extremely critical’ and the solution suggested for both browsers is the same, “disable JavaScript” will close the door on crackers. For the technical bulletins on these issues, visit Secunia (Firefox and Mozilla).
Critical Flaw Found in Firefox
Exploit code is already circulating online, security experts warn.
PCWorld.com - Latest News Stories

Mac Widget Worries
Widgets are wonderful but apparently open Mac-heads to possible problems according to reports from MacFixIt; a problem associated with the architecture of Apple’s Widgets could allow a cracker to install a ‘malicious JavaScipt’. The solution is to turn-off the option to open safe files after downloading, a command found in the preferences of Safari. Read more about this annoyance at MacFixIt:
Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) #12: Malicious Widget Installation; More on SCSI problems; Potential AirPort re-connect fix; more
Malicious Widget Installation Over the weekend, a Mac OS X user named Stephan posted a Web page demonstrating a vulnerability in Tiger's Widget architecture that could allow malicious JavaS… MacFixIt

Multiple Platforms Tip of the Day: One for each platform
An extended graduate exam followed by a nasty head cold resulted in little creative thought and planning for the Multiple Platforms Tip of the Day over the weekend; please forgive this replay of tips and definitions from November 24, 2004; the tips are still useful and if you are like me, you forget more shortcuts than you remember.

PC Tip of the Day: Desktop Cleanup Wizard
Is your desktop getting cluttered with shortcuts you never use? Windows XP includes the Desktop Cleanup Wizard and you can activate this program by right-clicking anywhere in a open Finder window then select ‘Arrange Icons By’; click on the Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard at the bottom of the pop-up dialogue box and follow the Wizard to a clean desktop.

Apple Tip of the Day: Close Programs Quickly
Last week our tips included the keyboard shortcut to quickly scroll through open programs: first press and hold command then press tab and the open application will be displayed in a small window and each time you depress Tab you scroll to the next program and the program last selected moves to the front. To quit any of those applications, command and tab to it, then while you continue to hold down the command key, select Q and the program will close.

What is GUI?
Microsoft provides the definition of the acronym GUI, “graphical user interface. An interface that represents programs, files, and options with graphical images. These images can include icons, menus, and dialog boxes. The user selects and activates these options by pointing and clicking with a mouse or with the keyboard. A particular GUI item (for example, a scroll bar) works the same way in all applications.”